The PEW research center estimates that nearly a quarter of immigrants in America are illegal or unauthorized. The New York City Migration Policy Institute (MPI) estimates just about 1 million unauthorized people in New York alone. Such findings exhibit that American society is permeated with dark shadows. What’s more dismaying however is that the undocumented immigrant offenders are often released by the police due to sanctuary policies.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (#ICE) has an important part to play in safeguarding society. Thus, its capacity and power of jurisdiction should be enhanced. There are several crucial reasons behind fortifying ICE and allowing them to identify themselves as police officers. First and foremost is the release of alien offenders without apprising the ICE officials due to New York City’s sanctuary policy. When alien criminals are released it undermines ICE’s ability to protect public safety and carry out its mission.
Moreover, many of the released aliens are repeat offenders. Endangering the security of the city in this way is an act tantamount to criminal negligence. The extent to which New York City’s sanctuary policies are a risk to society is comprehensively expressed by Thomas R. Decker, the field office director for ERO New York. “I don’t know what it will take for the representatives of New York City to see that keeping their sanctuary city policies are dangerous to the residents of this great city and, in some cases, deadly. Their policies continue to shield criminal aliens, allowing them to seek refuge in NYC communities and allows them to continue to break the laws of this country which threaten the lives and safety of its citizens. At some point, the lives and safety of the residents of NYC has to matter over the agendas of the politicians.”
New York is a place where millions of people flock to materialize their dreams and certainly it should not be a place that compromises the security and well-being of its citizens in order to provide for the opulence of illegal foreigners.
In Georgia, many counties have an agreement with ICE regarding department authority across different jurisdictions. During imprisonment, an undocumented alien or non-citizen arrested on state or local charges can be interrogated and placed on an immigrant detainer, leading them to the deportation. Such effective measures can easily be taken in New York City as well. It’s unfortunate that New York City’s sanctuary policy is proving to be the biggest impediment in catching alien foreigners. Thomas R. Decker states, “Because of the senseless local laws in New York City, thousands of illegal aliens have been released; and as this trend continues, thousands more will be released back into the communities to threaten the safety of our city’s citizens”.
Surveys also show that nearly 35% of respondents in America in 2019 believed that illegal immigration is a serious problem. Such statistics indicate that strengthening ICE and its officials is needed. Powers of police should be given to them for the swift cleansing of New York City and America as a whole. Bill de Blasio must understand that the biggest problem is not the identification of ICE officials as local police, but the release of alien criminals by sanctuary cities.
